Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-09-16
LAND LAW HISTORY.
Mr.. BroWning's and Mr.. HalPs Con-
nection with Its Passage Strikingiy
C0ntr8sted-An Open Letter.
The Letters, Claims and Rights INDICATED
The Intention of the Leass Feature
Forctbly Presented
MoBEKTIE, TEX, Sent. ,. lss

Hon. r. N. Hall, Commissioned General Land
Office, Austin, Tex.
DEAR SIR-Your open letter to NE CT
date August II, 1897, which appeared in
the daily newspapers Of the stste, pur-
porting 10 be reply TO my open letter Of
August 9, 1887, to Governor L S. Ross,
requires some notice on my part, mas
much as the Governor, by his silence, in
pliedIy adopts Is as his reply. My letter
to the Governor surely was not intended
to reflect upon the personal integrity Of
anyone, as l confined myself to the one
subject-the meaning OF the present land
law and its construction by those whose
dutyit is 10 execute it. a candid discussion
OF this subject ought to De Of interest
TO the public because of their direct in
terest in il, and the public mind should
not be thrown @ f its guard by PERSONAL
ties calculated to misleed the unWarY.
shall not indulge in them, but briefly
notice your treatment OF the matter in
issue. Your assertion that | "lsbOred so
persistently TO mar, mutilate and defeat
this law while il was being framed" that
my VindicatiOn depended upon It's failure,
and the insinuation that that was the
motive which impelled me TO write to
the Governor are somewhat tinctured
with unkindness. l seek no vlndica-
ton at the expense of my country.
And so long as have the
strength you will find me battling
sgainat any one who misinterprets her
laws 20 the detriment Of her general well
fare. shall gccredIt to you good faith
in what you have done ana will do in the
future. l think that you honestly mis-
take the meaning of the law. Since you
have made the charge that bitterly op-
posed the passage OF this law must ex-
plain and refute it, or the natural infer
enCe would be that by silence l implicitly
confess it's truth. You Will remembered
that you favored, yea, laboTed to secure
the passage OF the bill as it came from the
Senate to the House; that you
attended almost oil, if not every
committee meeting, and the sessions
Of each House, while it was under
consideration, and even followed the bill
into the free conference committee room.
Was this not done to protect it as fer IS
you could from inrOGds that might be
made into it by amendments? admit
that l opposed the passage of this bill in
the shape ii came to us from the Senate,
and favored the adoption of the House
bill, which l, in common with many
other members, considered a much wiser
and more conservative measure. But
this bill came TO Us branded as ''the aG-
min.stration's bill, " which gave ii d read
way impossible to overcome. When
the House adopted this bill instead
Of its own, l st once fell into
ranks and assisted as best | could, 10
perfect the measure before passing it.
True, voted for Mr.. Garwood's amend
ment to strike out the lease feature.
The country generally k2OWs thst l have
always opposed the leasing Of these
lands l also voted for Mr.. Jones'
amendment to strike out the clause
making all cases arising under the law
triable in the courts g. austin. This
did because l considered that feature .
direct reflection upon the integrity OF my
/ constituency, and q dangerous inlOva-
ton on the right Of local self government.
With the exception OF these two votes, 9
msiOrty Of each House concurred in
most, If not all, of my votes upon the
! bill,
offered but three amendments TO the
! bill while 1t was under consideration in
! the House. One OF these was to allow
the drouth sufferers to repurchase their
| forfeited homes without loss to them
another was to require patent to issue
upon any land sold under it, without
three years occupancy, whenever tOwr
/ is esta blished thereon; and the third Wa:
/ to make the lands clsssed as agricultural
subject to sale at ell times, notwlthsand-
ing they might be leased. This las
amendment makes it possible, il
tia lands are fairly clessif &C
and valued, for q settler K
get foothold in the country
it matters rot how the law Is executed
aud is in direct compliance with this
Democratic platform. All Of these
amendments were adopted and are nov
parts Of the law l submit TO generous
public to say which of US he'd q weather
eye on the rights of the settler. Before
other defects in the bill could be cureC
by appropriate amendments, its managers
yious question. You will doubtless re
member that when the free confereuc,
committee, Of which l was g member
had this bill under consideration,
pointed out defec. in i
wherein il failed to prescribe a penalty
in case g purchaser did rot reside upon
}
Bile for innumerable frauds to be perpe-
trated by spectators and pretended set
tiers. The committee at once recognized
the force OF my suggestion, ard tins
chairman directed Senator Bell and ny
self to draw up 81 amendment to cure tn:
glazing defect in the bill, which we did,
making the land forfeit to the state if The
purchaser fails to reside upor
1t for three consecutive year!
next after his purchase.
That amendment became 3 part OF thj
law These "mutlations" were not Ii
the bill when it came to the House; Still
you wanted it passed without r change
This last amendment makes it possible
for the genuine, actual settler only TO ge
the lard, and thus rescuirg it from tn
hands of the pretended settler and lsnC
Spectator. Can you, Or those Wht
"framed" and secured the enactment O.
the law, point to where you did more t
protect the state and the sexual settler
After the free conference commit
5, tee had agreed upon its re
fport, you will perhaps Iemembe
that Senator Mcdonald and myself wer
directed to superintend the enrolment o
the law in order that it might go TO tn
Governor fer his approval, exactly as i
passed both Houses of the Legislature
This proves that WAS not regarded b
the members Of the committee as tn
'sbitter enemy" OF the bill. Il Shout,
also be remembered that l offered tn
amendment which provided for subiectin,
the lessed agricultural lands to sale I,
actual settlers Notwithstanding tn
lessee o., the 18th Of March, 1887. An